Chapter 6 The First Jealousy #3
The photographer called them over. They stood together. Orm was still smiling. Ling noticed.
"What's so funny?"
"You."
"Why?"
"Nothing."
"Orm."
She leaned closer.
"You're jealous."
Ling looked directly at the camera.
"I'm protecting the campaign."
Orm laughed. The camera flashed. Again. And again. The photographer smiled.
"Perfect."
They continued posing.
But Orm could barely concentrate.
Every time she looked at Ling, she remembered the conversation. Every time Ling glanced at her, Orm felt that strange warmth in her chest. She didn't know what was happening. She didn't want to know. She simply knew she was enjoying this far more than she should.
?
Later that evening, Pete approached them before leaving.
"It was good seeing you."
Orm smiled.
"You too."
Pete looked at Ling.
"Take care of her."
Ling nodded.
"I will."
Pete smiled.
Then he looked at Orm again.
"Don't disappear again."
"I won't."
He hugged her.
It was an innocent hug.
A friendly goodbye.
Nothing more.
But when Pete stepped away, Orm noticed Ling's expression.
She was trying very hard to look indifferent. It wasn't working.
Orm almost laughed.
"You okay?"
"Yes."
"You're sure?"
"Yes."
"You look jealous again."
"I'm not."
Orm smiled.
"Protecting the campaign?"
Ling looked at her.
"Exactly."
Orm laughed.
"You're never going to let that go, are you?"
"No."
They began walking toward the exit.
After a few steps, Ling quietly said,
"He hugged you."
Orm stopped.
Then slowly turned toward her.
"Are you serious?"
Ling realised what she had said.
"I was making an observation."
Orm burst out laughing.
"That was the most jealous thing you've said all night."
"I'm not jealous."
"You noticed the hug."
"Anyone could have noticed."
"You noticed."
Ling sighed.
"Fine."
Orm waited.
Ling looked at her.
"I didn't like it."
Orm's smile faded.
Not because she was upset.
Because the admission was so unexpectedly honest.
"You really were jealous."
Ling nodded slightly.
"Maybe."
Orm smiled.
"Why?"
Ling didn't answer immediately.
The question seemed to catch her off guard.
Finally, she said,
"Because I don't like seeing someone else make you laugh like that."
Orm's heart skipped.
The words hung between them.
Ling looked away.
"I shouldn't have said that."
Orm didn't know what to say.
She had expected another excuse.
Another reference to the campaign.
Another carefully professional explanation.
Instead, Ling had given her something honest.
Something real.
And suddenly Orm wasn't laughing anymore.
She looked at Ling.
"Thank you."
Ling looked confused.
"For what?"
"For being honest."
Ling smiled faintly.
"Don't tell anyone."
Orm laughed softly.
"I won't."
They continued toward the car. This time, Ling reached for Orm's hand.
There was no camera.
No photographer.
No P'Cherry telling them to look natural.
No client watching.
Just the two of them.
Orm looked down at their hands.
Then up at Ling.
"Is this part of protecting the campaign too?"
Ling smiled.
"No."
Orm's heart beat faster.
"Then why?"
Ling squeezed her hand gently.
"Because I wanted to."
Orm looked away before Ling could see her smile.
For the first time since their arrangement began, she didn't feel like she was pretending.
And that frightened her more than the cameras ever had.
?
The car ride home was quieter than usual.
Orm sat beside Ling, their hands no longer touching, but the memory of them still lingered.
She looked out the window.
After several minutes, she said,
"You're going to deny all of this tomorrow, aren't you?"
Ling smiled.
"Probably."
"Why?"
"Because I have a reputation to maintain."
Orm laughed.
"Executive Director Lingling Kwong, completely unaffected by jealousy."
"Exactly."
"Terrible liar."
Ling looked at her.
"So are you."
Orm smiled.
"Maybe."
The car continued through the city.
Neither of them mentioned Pete again.
Neither mentioned the campaign.
Neither mentioned the rules.
But both were thinking about the same thing.
Jealousy wasn't supposed to be part of their arrangement.
Neither was the way Ling had looked at Orm when she admitted she didn't like seeing someone else make her laugh.
Neither was the warmth Orm had felt when Ling took her hand without a camera around.
They had agreed to pretend.
They had agreed to make people believe they were together.
They had agreed to keep everything professional.
And yet, somewhere between the photographs, the rehearsals, the teasing and the increasingly comfortable silence between them, something had begun to shift.
Neither woman was ready to name it.
Not yet.
For now, Orm was perfectly content to tease Ling about being jealous. And Ling was perfectly content to insist that she wasn't.
Because if pretending meant learning how to hold hands, smile at each other and convince the world that they were in love, perhaps jealousy was simply another part of the performance.
At least, that was what they could tell themselves.
For now.